High schools in Minnesota will no longer have a problem finding at least eight opponents to play each season.

The Minnesota State High School League yesterday approved “district football,” which reorganizes teams into 18 districts across the state.

“Everyone needs to keep in mind that this is just a step in the process of developing actual schedules for our member schools,” MSHSL associate director Kevin Merkle said on John Millea’s blog. “Some districts have a wide range in size and geography, but once the districts determine their sub-district alignments, most of the enrollment and geographical issues will be solved.”

In Duluth, however, the new plan has apparently ended a natural rivalry between Duluth high schools, according to the Duluth News Tribune.

Duluth Denfield and Duluth East were put into different districts.

Instead, East will play in a conference that includes Moorhead, Bemidji, and Rogers. Denfield, a smaller school, ended up in an Iron Range-heavy district that’s loaded with geographical rivalries.

It’s not a done deal yet. The league may yet allow scheduled games between districts, although that’s part of the problem that led to the new system in the first place.

Here are the new districts:

District: 9 – West Ada-Borup High School Ashby H.S. Bertha-Hewitt High School Brandon-Evansville High School Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart High School Cass Lake-Bena High School Clearbrook-Gonvick High School Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley H.S. Goodridge/Grygla-Gatzke Hancock High School Hillcrest Lutheran Academy Kittson County Central MACCRAY High School NCE/UH Titans Norman County West High School Northern Freeze Park Christian High School Renville County West High School Rothsay High School Stephen-Argyle Central High School Underwood High School Verndale High School Warren-Alvarado-Oslo High School Waubun High School Wheaton Herman Norcross Win-E-Mac High School

District: 9 – NorthBigfork High School Carlton High School Cherry High School Cook County High School Cromwell High School Ely High School Floodwood High School Hill City High School Isle High School Kelliher/Northome Lake of the Woods / Indus Littlefork-Big Falls High School McGregor High School Mesabi Academy School Mountain Iron-Buhl High School Nevis High School North Woods High School Northeast Range Northland High School Ogilvie High School Onamia High School Silver Bay (Wm. Kelley) High School South Ridge H.S. Wrenshall High School

District: 9 – South Alden-Conger High School Cleveland High School Edgerton/Ellsworth Fulda High School GHEC/Truman Glenville-Emmons High School Grand Meadow High School Hills-Beaver Creek High School Houston High School Lanesboro High School LeRoy-Ostrander High School Lyle-Pacelli Mabel-Canton High School Madelia High School Mountain Lake Area Nicollet High School Randolph High School Southwest Star Concept H. S. Spring Grove H.S. West Lutheran High School Westbrook-Walnut Grove High School

District: Big Southeast Austin High School Faribault High School Mankato East High School Mankato West High School New Prague High School Northfield H.S. Owatonna High School Red Wing High School Rochester Century High School Rochester John Marshall Rochester Mayo High School Winona High School

District: Southeast Byron High School Caledonia High School Cannon Falls High School Chatfield High School Cotter High School Dover-Eyota High School Kasson-Mantorville High School La Crescent High School Lake City High School Pine Island High School Plainview-Elgin-Millville High School Rochester Lourdes High School St. Charles High School Stewartville High School Triton High School Zumbrota-Mazeppa High School

District: Mid Southeast Bethlehem Academy Blooming Prairie High School Fillmore Central High School Goodhue High School Hayfield High School Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton H.S. Kenyon-Wanamingo High School Kingsland High School Lewiston-Altura High School Mankato Loyola Medford High School Rushford-Peterson High School Southland High School St. Clair High School United South Central High School Wabasha-Kellogg High School

District: South Central Albert Lea High School Belle Plaine H.S. Blue Earth Area High School Fairmont High School G-F-W High School Jackson County Central High School Jordan High School Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial Lester Prairie \ Holy Trinity LeSueur-Henderson High School Luverne High School Maple River High School Marshall High School Martin County West H.S. Mayer Lutheran High School New Richland-H-E-G H.S. New Ulm High School Norwood-Young America High School Pipestone Area High School Redwood Valley High School Saint James Area Sibley East High School St. Peter High School Tri-City United High School Waseca High School Waterville-Elysian-Morristown H.S. Windom Area High School Worthington High School

District: Southwest Adrian High School Canby High School Cedar Mountain/Comfrey Dawson-Boyd High School Lac qui Parle Valley High School Lakeview High School Minneota Minnesota Valley Lutheran Murray County Central High School New Ulm Cathedral High School Ortonville High School Red Rock Central High School Russell-Tyler-Ruthton High School Sleepy Eye High School Sleepy Eye Saint Mary’s High School Springfield High School Tracy-Milroy-Balaton High School Wabasso High School

District: East Central Albany High School Annandale High School Becker High School Dassel-Cokato High School Delano High School Foley High School Glencoe-Silver Lake High School Holy Family Catholic High School Hutchinson High School Litchfield High School Little Falls High School Milaca High School New London-Spicer High School St. Cloud Cathedral Watertown-Mayer High School Zimmerman High School

District: Mid State Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City H.S. B O L D High School Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa H.S. Benson High School Browerville H.S. Eden Valley-Watkins High School Holdingford High School Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted H.S. Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg H.S. Kimball Area High School Maple Lake High School Melrose Area High School Minnewaska Area H.S. Montevideo High School Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta Paynesville Area High School Pierz High School Prairie Valley Nighthawks Rockford High School Royalton High School Sauk Centre High School Upsala/Swanville West Central Area School Yellow Medicine East H.S.

District: Northwest Badger/GB-MR Bagley High School Blackduck High School Climax/Fisher Fertile-Beltrami High School Fosston High School Lake Park-Audubon Mahnomen High School New York Mills High School Pillager High School Pine River-Backus High School Red Lake County Rebels Red Lake High School Walker-Hackensack-Akeley H.S.

District: North Central Alexandria H.S. Bemidji High School Big Lake High School Brainerd High School Buffalo High School Cambridge-Isanti High School Chisago Lakes Area High School Duluth East High School Elk River High School Monticello High School Moorhead High School North Branch High School Princeton High School Rocori High School Rogers High School Saint Cloud Tech Sartell-Saint Stephen High School Sauk Rapids-Rice High School St. Cloud Apollo High School St. Francis High School St. Michael-Albertville H.S. Willmar High School

District: Northeast Aitkin High School Barnum High School Braham High School Chisholm High School Cloquet High School Crosby-Ironton High School Deer River High School Duluth Denfeld High School East Central High School Esko High School Eveleth-Gilbert High School Grand Rapids High School Greenway Naskwauk Keewatin Hermantown High School Hibbing H.S. Hinckley-Finlayson High School International Falls H.S. Marshall School, Duluth Mesabi East High School Moose Lake/Willow River Mora High School Pine City High School Proctor High School Rush City High School Two Harbors High School Virginia High School

District: Midwest Barnesville High School Breckenridge High School Crookston High School Detroit Lakes High School Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton H.S. East Grand Forks High School Fergus Falls High School Frazee High School Hawley High School Long Prairie-Grey Eagle H.S. Osakis High School Ottertail Central Bulldogs Park Rapids Area High School Pelican Rapids High School Pequot Lakes High School Perham High School Roseau High School Staples-Motley High School Thief River Falls High School United North Central Warriors Wadena-Deer Creek High School Warroad High School

District: Suburban Academy of Holy Angels Benilde-St. Margaret’s School Bloomington Jefferson High School Bloomington Kennedy High School Chanhassen High School Chaska High School DeLaSalle High School Irondale High School Orono High School Park Center High School Richfield High School Robbinsdale Armstrong High School Robbinsdale Cooper High School Spring Lake Park High School St. Louis Park High School Waconia High School

District: East Metro Apple Valley High School Burnsville H.S. Cretin-Derham Hall High School Eagan High School East Ridge High School Eastview High School Farmington High School Forest Lake High School Hastings High School Henry Sibley High School Hill-Murray School Lakeville North High School Lakeville South High School Mahtomedi High School Mounds View High School North High School Park High School Rosemount High School Roseville Area High School Simley High School South Saint Paul High School St. Thomas Academy Stillwater Area High School Tartan High School White Bear Lake Area High School Woodbury High School

District: West Metro Andover High School Anoka H.S. Blaine High School Centennial H.S. Champlin Park High School Coon Rapids High School Eden Prairie High School Edina High School Hopkins High School Maple Grove High School Minnetonka High School Osseo Prior Lake High School Shakopee High School Totino-Grace High School Wayzata High School

District: Twin City Blake School (The) Breck School Brooklyn Center High School Columbia Heights High School Concordia Academy-Roseville Fridley High School Minneapolis Edison High School Minneapolis North Community H.S. Minneapolis Patrick Henry H. S. Minneapolis South High School Minneapolis Southwest High School Minneapolis Washburn High School Minnehaha Academy Mound Westonka High School New Life Academy/St. Croix Preparatory Academy Providence Academy Roosevelt / MTS Saint Paul Central Saint Paul Harding H.S. Spectrum High School St. Agnes High School St. Anthony Village High School St. Croix Lutheran High School St. Paul Como Park H.S. St. Paul Highland Park St. Paul Humboldt High School St. Paul Johnson High School St.Paul Academy and Summit School

About the blogger

Bob Collins has been with Minnesota Public Radio since 1992, emigrating to Minnesota from Massachusetts. He was senior editor of news in the ’90s, ran MPR’s political unit, created the MPR News regional website, invented the popular Select A Candidate, started several blogs, and every day laments that his Minnesota Fantasy Legislature project never caught on.

NewsCut is a blog featuring observations about the news. It provides a forum for an online discussion and debate about events that might not typically make the front page. NewsCut posts are not news stories.

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/Instead, East will play in a conference that includes Moorhead, Bemidji, and Rogers.

Google Maps says it is roughly 4 1/2 hours one way to Moorhead from Duluth and 2 1/2 hours (again, one way) to Rogers! Nothing like asking your kids to endure a bunch of long bus rides and restructuring your transportation budget to take the added travel expense into account. Good grief.

joetron2030

Wow, my alma mater (Irondale) is now in the same conference as the h.s. my kids will attend (St. Louis Park). Crazy.

Inella

The Big Southeast is essentially the old Big Nine Conference from the ’80’s. Missing is Albert Lea (which is now in the South Central) and added back is Red Wing which disappeared from the Big Nine around ’80. New Prague, Northfield, and Rochester Century are the others that weren’t in Big Nine then.